You’ve heard of carbon wheels, you’ve seen them, your friends have them…however it happened, here you are, wondering whether an investment in carbon wheels will be worth it, or, having made that choice already, you’re just not 100% sure yet which wheels will be the best fit for you.
Well, we feel you, and that’s why we have designed an easy to follow process to determine if, indeed, investing in carbon is a good idea, and if so, what the optimal specs should be.
Before proceeding to navigate your way in the chart, just know our rationale has some assumptions and limitations to consider;
We believe that among all benefits, performance is carbon’s most valuable contribution. Hence, this is where we start. Your level of interest in improving your performance, as well as your current performance level, will define in great measure the final outcome.
We see three main motivations to go carbon; performance, design or other (handling, stiffness).
Recommendations on carbon wheelsets are simplified to rim depth. However, we acknowledge that many other specs would play a fundamental role in your final wheelset decision. The underlying assumptions here are two; the longer the distance and/or the faster you ride, the more benefit a carbon wheel will yield, and, the deeper the rim the more aero gains you’ll capture (gradually offset by a heavier wheel).
Last but not least, the process below is dedicated for road bikes only.
Our decision chart.
‘Ok, I know what I want, now, what would be a fair price for that wheelset?’
All we can say is to make sure that;
The product is reliable (quality, warranty and returns policies are in place) and fully satisfies all reasons that motivated the purchase.
You love it!
The price is a fair price given what you’re getting (beyond the product; customer experience, innovation, social and environmental impact, etc.) relative to identical or very similar products in the market.
All we can hope is for Negative Split to be in position to compete with all the other great carbon wheel players, that to be fair, are doing an outstanding job out there!
Hoping this helps you make a better decision on your next wheelset!
Please, send thru your comments and thoughts to javiergarcia@nscarbon.com and when in doubt, reach out to us and we’ll seek our athlete’s opinion and give you the best possible advice.